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Preparation

Arrange the ducks breast sides up several inches apart on a rack set over a large roasting pan and let them dry, uncovered and chilled for 3 days.

Make the marinade:

In a bowl combine the Scotch, the gingerroot, the garlic, the zest, the coriander seeds, the peppercorns, the soy sauce, the honey, and the brown sugar and let the marinade stand, covered and chilled, for 3 days. Stir the marinade and strain it through a fine sieve into a small bowl, pressing hard on the solids.

Keep the ducks chilled, brush them with some of the marinade every 30 minutes for 2 1/2 hours, reserving the remaining marinade. Let the ducks dry at room temperature for 30 minutes. Stuff each duck cavity with 1 of the bread slices, 1 of the scallions, and 1 of the parsley sprigs, spoon the reserved marinade into the duck cavities, and prick the ducks, except for the breasts, lightly with a fork. Pour the beer into the roasting pan and roast the ducks on the rack in the lower third of a preheated 350°F. oven for 30 minutes. Tent the ducks with a piece of foil and roast them for 30 minutes more. Discard the foil and roast the ducks for 30 minutes more, or until a meat thermometer inserted in the fleshy part of a thigh registers 180°F. (The skin will be mahogany colored and very crisp.) Remove the stuffing ingredients with a spoon and discard them and the pan juices. Pour the juices from the cavities through a fine sieve into a small bowl, skim the fat, and reserve 1/4 cup of the juices. Arrange the ducks on a platter and keep them warm, covered loosely.

Make the sauce:

In a saucepan bring the stock to a boil, simmer it for 15 minutes, and stir in the reserved juices. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stir the arrowroot mixture, and add it to the pan. Cook the mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, being careful not to let it boil, until it is thickened, add salt and pepper to taste, and transfer the sauce to a heated sauceboat.

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Recent Reviews

Delicious way to prepare duck. The scotch adds a subtle, smoky flavor.

ericsean from West New York, NJ /

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Just finished Christmas dinner and my family raved about these ducks. Dad said they're as good as it gets. They were beautiful, a lovely deep mahogany as promised. The juices in the ducks were scant, and my brother pronounced it "criminal" to throw out the pan juices, so I poured off the fat, strained the pan juices, and added about half to the broth mixture. I was worried the sauce would be too salty as a result of all the soy sauce, but it was perfect, with that lovely browned flavor that would have been missing from mere thickened beef stock. Eat at least a few bites of skin, no matter what your diet--you'd be missing the best part if you didn't. All in all, a real holiday triumph.

A Cook from Lancaster, PA /

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this is one of my favorites and always receives rave reviews-however-I do not dry the duck for 3 days but rather marinate it of the course of 2-3 days-really fantastic!!Grant Mitman

gmitman from Butte Montana /

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Looked impressive but tasted BLAND. Too much work for so little payback. I have cooked duck many times and this is not one of the better ways to prepare it.

Laura Cote from Monterey California /

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Awesome!Did it a bit differently but it was great. Marinaded duck overnight in plastic bag. Reserved juices and reduced to thick sauce. Rotisseried the duck on BBQ and basted with sauce after two hours on spit. Outside was delicious as was the tender meat inside. Simpler and tasty.